(minimal) LOUIE at the Movies – Band Aid (2017)

This week, I share a “(minimal) LOUIE at the Movies” post.

The movie is called “Band Aid,” and it’s an indie film that my friend Jason Roeber found on Netflix. Because Rotten Tomatoes wrote such a wonderful description of this production, and I am feeling lazy (as well as busy with all sorts of other stuff), I’m going to borrow their brief description of this film…

Band Aid, the refreshingly raw, real, and hilarious feature debut from Zoe Lister-Jones, is the story of a couple, Anna (Zoe Lister-Jones) and Ben (Adam Pally), who can’t stop fighting. Advised by their therapist to try and work through their grief unconventionally, they are reminded of their shared love of music. In a last-ditch effort to save their marriage, they decide to turn all their fights into song, and with the help of their neighbor Dave (Fred Armisen), they start a band. A story of love, loss, and rock and roll, Band Aid is a witty and perceptive view of modern love, with some seriously catchy pop hooks to boot.

The LOUIE reference is definitely minimal, as there’s a moment when the lead characters are sampling the riff (which one could argue might have been swiped from “El Loco Cha Cha” or “Wild Thing”), and they come up with another song entirely.

This would be the type of song we’d categorize as a “LOUIE bastard,” with just enough elements for some of us to go “AHA!”

I really enjoyed this film, which was filmed with an all-female crew, and features some witty dialogue and fun songs with rather silly lyrics.

Colin Hanks, the son of Tom, who directed that wonderful “All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records” documentary, has a brief appearance as a character called “Uber Douche.”

Hats off to Zoe Lister-Jones for creating this charming little production, which not only offered new fuel for drummer jokes, but also provided at least one moment that I imagine Joe Bob Briggs would likely assign special points if he were still keeping track of such things…